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Electronic Texts by Cooper in English (I-Novels; II-Non-Fiction, Articles, Short Stories; III-Correspondence)

I - Novels (in chronological order) [Note: We do not necessarily list all on-line texts of a particular novel, as the number keeps growing.].

(1820-50) Thirty of Cooper's works, mostly from the Gutenburg (text format) editions, and including novels and shorter works, can be found on this website.
(1823-1841) The Five Leather-Stocking Tales. (The Pioneers (1823); The Last of the Mohicans (1826); The Prairie (1827); The Pathfinder (1840); The Deerslayer (1841). 4Literature.net compilation of great books.
(1820) Precaution. Project Gutenberg Text.
(1820) Precaution. University of Virginia facsimile (image and text) of the 1820 first edition: Volume I (520 KB); Volume II: (640 KB).
(1820) Precaution. Making of America Text -- New York: Hurd and Houghton, 1871. (University of Michigan)
(1821) The Spy. Project Gutenberg Text
(1821) The Spy: A Tale of the Neutral Ground. University of Virginia facsimile (image and text) of the 1821 first edition: Volume I (580 KB). Volume II (640 KB).
(1821) The Spy; A Tale of the Neutral Ground. Making of America -- New York: J.G. Gregory, 1862. (University of Michigan)
(1821) The Spy; A Tale of the Neutral Ground. Making of America -- New York: Hurd & Houghton, 1870. (University of Michigan)
(1823) The Pioneers, or the Sources of the Susquehanna; A Descriptive Tale. University of Virginia facsimile (image and text) of the 1823 first edition: Volume I (630 KB). Volume II (710 KB).
(1823) The Pioneers. Hypertext edition from the University of Virginia, with extensive critical commentary, etc.
(1823) The Pioneers, or The Sources of the Susquehanna. A Descriptive Tale. A Gutenberg .txt text.
(1823) The Pioneers, or The Sources of the Susquehanna. A Descriptive Tale. Making of America Text -- New York: Stringer and Townsend, 1856. (University of Michigan)
(1823) The Pioneers, or The Sources of the Susquehanna. A Descriptive Tale. Making of America Text -- New York: Hurd and Houghton, 1870. (University of Michigan)
(1824) The Pilot. Project Guteberg Text.
(1824) The Pilot; A Tale of the Sea. University of Virginia facsimile (image and text) of the 1824 (dated 1823) first edition: Volume I (570 KB). Volume II (610 KB).
(1824) The Pilot; A Tale of the Sea. Making of America Text -- New York: J.G. Gregory, 1862. (University of Michigan)
(1824) The Pilot; A Tale of the Sea. Making of America Text -- New York: Hurd and Houghton, 1871. (University of Michigan)
(1824) The Pilot; A Tale of the Sea. Making of America Text -- New York: Hurd and Houghton, 1872. [with F.O.C. Darley illustrations] . (University of Michigan)
(1826) The Last of the Mohicans: A Narrative of 1757. Project Gutenberg Text.
(1826) The Last of the Mohicans; A Narrative of 1757. University of Virginia facsimile (image and text) of the 1826 first edition: Volume I (580 KB). Volume II (580 KB).
(1826) The Last of the Mohicans; a Narrative of 1757. A Univ. of Virginia "chapter by chapter" text (no images) (from 1826 first edition) ; also single text (895 KB)
(1826) The Last of the Mohicans; a Narrative of 1757. A Bibliomania "chapter by chapter" HTML text
(1826) The Last of the Mohicans; a Narrative of 1757. Making of America Text -- New York: Stringer & Townsend, 1854. (University of Michigan)
(1826) The Last of the Mohicans; a Narrative of 1757. Making of America Text -- New York: W.A. Townsend, 1859. (University of Michigan)
(1826) The Last of the Mohicans; a Narrative of 1757. Making of America Text -- New York: Hurd & Houghton, 1871. (University of Michigan)
(1826) The Last of the Mohicans: a Narrative of 1757. Edition not specified. National Library of China, Beijing.
(1827) The Prairie. Project Gutenberg Text.
(1827) The Prairie; A Tale. University of Virginia facsimile (image and text) of the 1827 first edition: Volume I (640 KB). Volume II (660 KB).
(1827) The Prairie. A Bibliomania "chapter by chapter" HTML text.
(1828) The Red Rover. Project Gutenbert Text.
(1828) The Red Rover. Making of America Text -- New York: W.A. Townsend, 1859. (University of Michigan)
(1828) The Red Rover. Making of America Text -- New York: Hurd & Houghton, 1871. (University of Michigan)
(1820) The Wept of Wish-ton-Wish. Project Gutenberg Text.
(1829) The Wept of Wish-ton-Wish. Making of America Text -- Hurd and Houghton, 1866. (University of Michigan)
(1829) The Wept of Wish-ton-Wish. Making of America Text -- Hurd & Houghton, 1871. (University of Michigan)
(1830) The Water Witch; or, The Skimmer of the Seas. A Tale. The rare 1830 Dresden edition, that preceded the first American and English editions. With a Forward by Prof. Thomas Philbrick. On this website.
(1830) The WaterWitch; or, The Skimmer of the Seas. Project Gutenberg Text
(1830) The Water-Witch, or The Skimmer of the Seas. A Tale. University of Virginia facsimile (image and text) of the 1830 first American edition: Volume I (650 KB). Volume II (590 KB)
(1830) The Water-Witch; or, The Skimmer of the Seas. Making of America Text -- New York: J.P. Putnam, 1852. (University of Michigan)
(1830) The Water-Witch; or, The Skimmer of the Seas. Making of America Text -- New York: J.G. Gregory, 1863. (University of Michigan)
(1830) The Water-Witch; or, The Skimmer of the Seas. Making of America Text -- New York: Hurd and Houghton, 1871. (University of Michigan)
(1830) The Water-Witch; or, The Skimmer of the Seas. Making of America Text -- New York: Hurd and Houghton, 1872. (University of Michigan)
(1831) The Bravo. Project Gutenberg Text.
(1831) The Bravo. Making of America Text -- New York: W.A. Townsend, 1860. (University of Michigan)
(1831) The Bravo. Making of America Text -- New York: Hurd and Houghton, 1871. (University of Michigan)
(1831) The Bravo. Making of America Text -- New York: Hurd and Houghton, 1872. [with F.O.C. Darley illustrations] (University of Michigan)
(1832) The Heidenmauer; or, The Benedictines. A Legend of the Rhine. Making of America Text -- New York: Hurd & Houghton, 1868. (University of Michigan)
(1832) The Heidenmauer; or, The Benedictines. A Legend of the Rhine. Making of America Text -- New York: Hurd & Houghton, 1871. (University of Michigan)
(1833) The Headsman. Project Gutenberg Text
(1833) The Headsman. Making of America Text -- New York: W. A. Townsend, 1860. (University of Michigan)
(1833) The Headsman. Making of America Text -- New York: Hurd & Houghton, 1871. (University of Michigan)
(1835) The Monikins. Making of America Text -- New York: Stringer & Townsend, 1855. (University of Michigan)
(1835) The Monikins. Making of American Text -- New York: D. Appleton, 1868. (University of Michigan)
(1835) The Monikins. Making of American Text -- New York: Hurd & Houghton, 1871. (University of Michigan)
(1835) The Monikins. Project Gutenberg Text.
(1835) The Monikins. On-line Library Text.
(1838) Homeward Bound; or, The Chase. Project Gutenberg Text
(1838) Homeward Bound; or, The Chase. A Tale of the Sea. Making of America Text -- New York: Hurd & Houghton, 1871. (University of Michigan)
(1838) Home as Found. Project Guteberg Text
(1838) Home as Found. Making of America Text -- New York: Hurd & Houghton, 1871. (University of Michigan)
(1840) The Pathfinder; or, The Inland Sea. A Gutenberg .txt text.
(1840) The Pathfinder; or, The Inland Sea. Making of America Text -- New York: Stringer and Townsend, 1853. (University of Michigan)
(1840) The Pathfinder; or, The Inland Sea. Making of America Text -- New York: J.G. Gregory, 1862. (University of Michigan)
(1840) The Pathfinder; or, The Inland Sea. Making of America Text -- New York: Hurd & Houghton, 1871. (University of Michigan)
(1840) Mercedes of Castile. Making of America Text -- New York: Hurd & Houghton, 1867. (University of Michigan)
(1841) The Deerslayer: or, The First War-Path. A Tale. University of Virginia facsimile (image and text) of the 1841 first edition: Volume I (705 KB). Volume II (771 KB).
(1841) The Deerslayer; or, The First War-path. Making of America Text -- New York: Stringer and Townsend, 1854. (University of Michigan)
(1841) The Deerslayer; or, The First War-path. Making of America Text -- New York: Hurd and Houghton, 1869. (University of Michigan)
(1841) The Deerslayer. Project Gutenberg Text.
(1842) The Two Admirals. Making of America Text -- New York: G.P. Putnam, 1852. (University of Michigan)
(1842) The Two Admirals. Making of America Text -- New York: W.A. Townsend, 1861. (University of Michigan)
(1842) The Two Admirals. Making of America Text -- New York: Hurd & Houghton, 1871. (University of Michigan)
(1842) The Two Admirals. Making of America Text -- New York: Hurd & Houghton, 1872. [with F.O.C. Darley illustrations] (University of Michigan)
(1842) The Wing-and-Wing; or, Le Feu Follet. Project Gutenberg Text
(1842) The Wing-and-Wing; or, Le Feu Follet. Making of America Text -- New York: G.P. Putnam, 1853. (University of Michigan)
(1842) The Wing-and-Wing; or, Le Feu Follet. Making of America Text -- New York: J.G. Gregory, 1863. (University of Michigan)
(1842) The Wing-and-Wing; or, Le Feu Follet. Making of America Text -- New York: Hurd and Houghton, 1872. (University of Michigan)
(1843) Wyandotté or, The Hutted Knoll. Project Gutenberg Text
(1843) Wyandotté or, The Hutted Knoll. A Tale. University of Virginia facsimile (image and text) of the 1843 first edition: Volume I (655 KB). Volume II (590 KB).
(1843) Wyandotté or, The Hutted Knoll. A Tale. Making of America Text -- New York: Hurd & Houghton, 1871. (University of Michigan)
(1844) Afloat and Ashore, A Sea Tale.. Project Gutenberg Text
(1844) Afloat and Ashore, a Sea Tale.. Making of America Text -- New York: J.G. Gregory, 1864. (University of Michigan)
(1844) Afloat and Ashore, a Sea Tale.. Making of America Text -- New York: Hurd & Houghton, 1871. (University of Michigan)
(1844) Miles Wallingford; a sequel to Afloat and Ashore. Project Gutenberg Text
(1844) Miles Wallingford; a sequel to Afloat and Ashore. Making of America Text -- New York: J.G. Gregory, 1863. (University of Michigan)
(1845) Satanstoe; or, The Littlepage Manuscripts. Project Gutenberg Text
(1845) Satanstoe; or, The Littlepage manuscripts. A tale of the colony.. Making of America Text -- New York: Hurd & Houghton, 1867. (University of Michigan)
(1847) The Crater. Project Gutenberg Text
(1847) The Crater. Making of America Text -- New York: J. G. Gregory, 1863. (University of Michigan)
(1848) Jack Tier; or The Florida Reef. University of Virginia facsimile (image and text) of the 1848 first edition: Volume I (670 KB). Volume II (600 KB).
(1848) Jack Tier; or, The Florida Reef. Making of America Text -- New York: Hurd & Houghton, 1872. (University of Michigan)
(1848) Jack Tier; or, The Florida Reef. Project Gutenberg Text.
(1848) The Oak Openings. Making of America Text -- New York, Stringer and Townsend, 1854. (University of Michigan)
(1848) The Oak Openings. Making of America Text -- New York, Hurd and Houghton, 1869 [listed in Making of America index as 1871]. (University of Michigan)
(1848) The Oak Openings. Making of America Text -- New York, Hurd and Houghton, 1871 [correctly indexed as 1871]. (University of Michigan)
(1848) The Oak Openings. Gutenberg Project Text.
(1848) The Oak Openings. On-Line Library.
(1849) The Sea Lions; or, The Lost Sealers. Project Gutenberg Text
(1849) The Sea Lions; or, The Lost Sealers. Making of America Text -- New York: W.A. Townsend, 1860. (University of Michigan)
(1849) The Sea Lions; or, The Lost Sealers. Making of America Text -- New York: Hurd & Houghton, 1871. (University of Michigan)
(1850) The Ways of the Hour. Blackmask Online text
(1850) The Ways of the Hour. Blackmask online .pdf (Adobe) text
NOTE:. The Society of Arno Schmidt Readers website, in addition to German-language Cooper texts, has placed on-line a number of English language texts from 19th Century American editions (mostly Stringer & Townsend of the 1850s). In .pdf page image form: The Crater; The Monikins; Satanstoe; The Wept of Wish-ton-Wish; The Last of the Mohicans;

The Deerslayer

;

The Oak Openings

;

The Pathfinder

II - Non-Fiction, Articles, Short Stories (in chronological order)

(1823) Tales For Fifteen; or, Imagination and Heart. Two short stories. Gutenberg Project (annotated text file). Also on this website at: Tales for Fifteen.
(1828) Notions of the Americans: Picked up by a Travelling Bachelor. Library of Congress American Notes: Travels in America, 1750-1920 collection. Page images of reprint edition (New York: Stringer & Townsend, 1850 [2 volumes]) and searchable texts.
(1832) Administration financière des États-Unis; lettre au général Lafayette sur les dépenses publiques. Revue des Deux Mondes n.s., Vol. V, pp. 145-182 (January 15, 1832). French National Library (Gallica), page images. Reprint of Letter to Général Lafayette, published in pamphlet form in 1831. [As of 2005 not currently accessible]
(1832) Point de Bateaux à Vapeur [No Steamboats]. Paris, ou Le Livre de Cent-et-Un (Paris: Chez Ladvocate, 1832) , Vol. 9, pp. 221-250. French National Library (Gallica), page images. Satirical "conversation" on European misinformation about America; written by Cooper in French (according to editor's introductory footnote). Also on this website (with annotated English translation) at: Point de Bateaux à Vapeur.
(1834) A Letter to His Countrymen. Why Cooper planned to give up writing. On this website.
(1836) Gleanings in Europe: The Rhine. [A Residence in France; with an Excursion up the Rhine, and a Second Visit to Switzerland -- Original American title: Sketches of Switzerland. Part Second.] Project Gutenberg
(1836) Gleanings in Europe: The Rhine. [A Residence in France; with an Excursion up the Rhine, and a Second Visit to Switzerland. Paris: Baudry's European Library, 1836. -- Original American title: Sketches of Switzerland. Part Second.] French National Library (Gallica), page images.
(1837) Gleanings in Europe: France. [Recollections of Europe. Paris: Baudry's European Library, 1837. -- Original American title: Gleanings in Europe.] French National Library (Gallica), page images.
(1838) The Chronicles of Cooperstown, in S. M. Shaw, ed., A Centennial Offering. Being a Brief History of Cooperstown.... (Cooperstown: Freeman's Journal, 1886), pp. 9-61. Cooper's The Chronicles of Cooperstown (Cooperstown: E. & H. Phinney, 1838), telling the story of the Village from its founding in 1786 through the 1830s, was frequently reprinted in subsequent local histories. (Cornell University, Making of America Text, page images.)
(1838) The American Democrat (Cooperstown: E. & H. Phinney, 1838) Basic essays on American culture and politics. Google book text; searchable page images.
(1839) "Perry's Victory on Lake Erie (1813)" from A History of the Navy of the United States of America.
(1842) The Edinburgh Review on James's Naval Occurrences, and Cooper's Naval History. Part 1 | Part 2. The United States Magazine and Democratic Review, Volume 10, Nos. 47-48 (May-June 1842), pp. 411-435, 515-541. Making of American Text, page images. Unsigned review of The Edinburgh Review's review -- for attribution to Cooper see p. 541 at end.
(1843) Ned Myers; or, A Life Before the Mast. Biography of an ordinary American sailor. Project Gutenberg Text
(1843) Ned Myers; or, A Life Before the Mast. Biography of an ordinary American sailor. Making of America Text -- Stringer and Townsend, 1854. (University of Michigan)
(1843) Autobiography of a Pocket-Handkerchief. Novelette. Gutenberg project (annotated text file). Also on this website at: Autobiography of a Pocket-Handkerchief.
(1846) Lives of Distinguished American Naval Officers.
(1846) "Melancthon Taylor Woolsey", from Lives of Distinguished American Naval Officers, Vol. II, pp. 113-145. From family and genealogical page of Mary S. Van Deusen.
(1846) "John Paul Jones", from Lives of Distinguished American Naval Officers, Vol. II, pp. 5-112. From Naval Historical Center website.

(1850) Upside Down; or, Philosophy in Petticoats. Only surviving scene from a play. Annotated text on this website.
(1850) The Lake Gun. Short Story. Gutenberg Project (annotated text file). Also on this website at: The Lake Gun.
(1851) New York. Introduction to the never-completed history, The Towns of Manhattan. Gutenberg Project (annotated text file). Also on this website at New York.
(1850) New York. Introduction to the never-completed history, The Towns of Manhattan. Page by Page Books.
(1851) American and European Scenery Compared. The International magazine of literature, art, and science, Volume 4, Issue 5 (December 1851), pp. 625-631. From The Home Book of the Picturesque (New York: G.P. Putnam, 1852), pp. 51-69. Making of America Text, page images.
(1852) American and European Scenery Compared,. The Home Book of the Picturesque (New York: G.P. Putnam, 1852), pp. 51-59. Library of Congress.
(1853) Old Ironsides. Part 1 | Part 2 [composed ca. 1850]. Putnam's monthly magazine of American literature, science and art, Vol. 1, Nos. 5-6 (May-June 1853), pp. 473-487, 593-607. Making of American Text, page images. Unfinished history of the U.S. Frigate Constitution. Also on-line on this website at Old Ironsides.
(1868) Fragments from a Diary of James Fenimore Cooper. Putnam's monthly magazine of American literature, science and art Volume 11, No. 2 (February 1868), pp. 167-172. Making of American Text, page images. Excerpts, annotated by Susan Fenimore Cooper, from Cooper's journal, Paris, Sept. 19-29, 1830 (General La Fayette and current events).
(1868) Passages from a Diary of James Fenimore Cooper. Putnam's monthly magazine of American literature, science and art Volume 11, No. 6 (June 1868), pp. 730-737. Making of American Text, page images. Excerpts, annotated by Susan Fenimore Cooper, from Cooper's journal, Switzerland, July 14-Aug. 24, 1828 (travel).
(1869) The Battle of Plattsburgh Bay [composed ca. 1845]. Putnam's monthly magazine of American literature, science and art, Volume 13, No. 13 (January 1869), pp. 49-59. Making of American Text, page images. Lecture on the 1814 Lake Champlain naval battle, prepared for the New-York Historical Society; edited by Susan Fenimore Cooper.
(1869) The Eclipse [composed ca. 1836]. Putnam's monthly magazine of American literature, science and art, Volume 14, No. 21 (September 1869), pp. 352-359. Making of American Text, page images. Manuscript account of an 1806 total solar eclipse in Cooperstown. Edited (and misdated ca. 1831) by Susan Fenimore Cooper.
(1869) The Eclipse. The same, placed on line by the University of Virginia.

III - Correspondence.

(1922) James Fenimore Cooper [grandson], ed., Correspondence of James Fenimore-Cooper Volume I (including Susan Fenimore Cooper, Small Family Memories); Volume II. [Note: May require DJVu Plugin (free); scanning sometimes inaccurate, missing lines at head or foot of page.]

Electronic Texts in French

HAPPILY, THESE FRENCH TEXTS CAN NOW BE REACHED -- AND THE NUMBER HAS GROWN FROM 13 TO 46 volumes [November 2006]

The French National Library website Gallica has placed some 46 Cooper novels and other works, in French translation, on-line. They can be accessed at the Gallica website by: (1) click on "Recherche"; (2) enter "Fenimore" or "Fenimore Cooper" in the box marked "Auteur"; click on "Rechercher".
The volumes in a complete 30 volume set of Cooper's novels as published by Fume, C. Gosselin; and then by Fume, Pagnerre, et Perrotin, between 1839 and 1854 (look for Oeuvres), some 15 other novel translations, and some non-fiction including Ned Myers (La Vie d'un Matelot), Gleanings in Europe: France, and Gleanings in Europe: The Rhine

In addition there is at least one significant periodical item

Gallica

(1832) Administration financi�re des États-Unis.- Lettre au g�n�ral Lafayette [Financial Administration of the United States -- Letter to General Lafayette in Revue des deux mondes : recueil de la politique, de l'administration et des moeurs. 1 fasc.1832. N.s. T. 5. (janv.-mars), pp. 145-182.

Electronic Texts in Hungarian

Nyomkeresö The Pathfinder. Translated (and adapted) by Szinnai Tivadar.

Electronic Texts in Russian

Eight Cooper Texts in Russian

Leatherstocking Tales: 1. The Deerslayer; 2. The Last of the Mohicans; 3. The Pathfinder; 4. The Pioneers; 5. The Prairie
Other Novels: 1. The Bravo; 2. Lionel Lincoln; 3. The Spy

Electronic Texts in German

England. Gleanings in Europe: England in German. Translation by Albert Constantin Gotthilf Treskow. Quedlinburg und Leipzig: Druck und Verlag von Gottfr. Vasse, 1837. 2 vols. Page images (black letter).
Die Monikins. The Monikins. In German. Translation by Carl Friedrich Meurer. Frankfurt am Mein: J.D. Sauerländer, 1835. (From Cooper's sämmtliche Werke, Vols. 82-87.) Page images (black letter). [From Society of Arno Schmidt Readers website.]
Satanstoe, oder die Familie Littlepage. Eine Erzählung aus der Colonie. Satanstoe. In German. Stuttgart: Liesching, 1846. (From Amerikanische Romane, Vol. 24.) Page images (black letter). [From Society of Arno Schmidt Readers website.]
Die Grenzbewohner, oder : Die Beweinte von Wish-Ton-Wish. The Wept of Wish-Ton-Wish. In German. Translation by Carl Meurer. Berlin: Rob. Genrich, n.d. [ca. 1860]. Page images (black letter). [From Society of Arno Schmidt Readers website.]
Die Wassernixe oder der Streicher durch die Meere. The Water-Witch; or, The Skimmer of the Seas. In German. Translation by Dr. G. Friedenberg. Stuttgart: Hoffmann, 1853. Page images (black letter). [From Society of Arno Schmidt Readers website.]

Other Electronic Tools

Internet Public Library, On-Line Literary Research Collection: James Fenimore Cooper. A variety of Cooper links (articles, websites, etc.).

Student Assistance Sites

Whether "student note" sites are helpful or harmful to real study may well be debated; some sites are really trying to sell papers to would-be plagiarists. Nevertheless we have found a couple of sites dealing with The Last of the Mohicans, with canned biographies of Cooper, summaries (short and chapter-by-chapter) of the novel, and other information. We provide links for what they may be worth, and because we seek to be complete, but such links do not constitute recommendations in any sense. The James Fenimore Cooper Society is happy to assist students whenever it can, though we will not provide canned answers. Just send your e-mail questions to Ask Fenimore.

Classic Notes. This is from the GradeSaver Resource Center website, written by "Harvard graduates."
SparkNotes. From the SparkNotes.com website. Written by "Harvard students and graduates."

There is also an interesting collections of detailed plot summaries of Cooper novels, put on line by Antiques Digest!

Early Reviews

(1821-29) Early English Reviews, etc.. British website with information on publication, advertising, distribution, etc. of early English editions of Nine Cooper novels, as well as texts of early reviews.
(1822) W.H. Gardiner, Review of The Spy. The North American Review, Volume 15, Issue 26 (July 1822), pp. 250-283. Perhaps the most influential review ever written about a Cooper text -- helped launch Cooper's career, and pointed him towards Native Americans as appropriate subjects for fiction. Making of America Text, page images
(1826) Review of The Pioneers and The Last of the Mohicans. The North American Review, Volume 23, Issue 52 (July 1826), pp. 150-197. Making of America Text, page images.
(1832) Review of The Heidenmauer. The New England Magazine, Vol. 3, No. 5 (November 1832), pp. 423-424. Making of America Text, page images
(1834) Review of The Headsman. The New England Magazine, Vol. 6, No. 1 (January 1834), pp. 88-89. Making of America Text, page images.
(1834) Review of A Letter to His Countrymen. Scathing! The New England Magazine, Vol. 7, No. 2 (August 1834), pp. 1540157. Making of America Text, page images.
(1834) A Reply to the Letter of J.F. Cooper. By one of his Countrymen. The New England Magazine, Vol. 7, No. 4 (October 1834), pp. 333-336. Scathing rebuttal to Cooper's book. Making of America text, page images.
(1835) Review of The Monikins. The New England Magazine, vol. 9, No. 8 (August 1835), pp. 136-137. Making of America text, page images.
(1838) Cooper's Novels and Travels -- Review of Gleanings in Europe ("Gleanings in Europe: France" in modern editions). Reviewed in context of Cooper's total work, which is discussed at length. The North American review, Volume 46, Issue 98 (January 1838), pp. 1-20. Making of America Text, page images.
(1838) Review of Homeward Bound. The North American review, Volume 47, Issue 101 (October 1838), pp. 488-489. Making of America Text, page images.
(1839) Review of Cooper's Naval History. The North American review, Volume 49, Issue 105 (October 1839), pp. 432-467. Making of America Text, page images.
(1840) Park Benjamin, Fenimore Cooper's Libels on America and Americans. University of Virginia facsimile (image and text) of a hostile review of Homeward Bound and Home as Found from The New World, August 29 and September 5, 1840. Cooper had sued Park Benjamin, editor of The New World, for libel in earlier articles, and in 1841 won a verdict for $375.
(1841) Review of The Deerslayer. The United States Democratic Review, Vol. 9, No. 40 (October 1841), pp. 404-405. Making of America text, page images
(1844) American Works of Fiction. The Living Age, Vol. 2, No. 23 (October 19, 1844), pp. 643-655. Critical discussion of Cooper, pp. 649-651. Making of America text, page images.
(1846) Lives of Distinguished American Naval Officers -- J. Fenimore Cooper. American Whig Review, Volume 3, Issue 6 (June 1846), pp. 673-674. Review of Cooper's naval biographies. Making of America Text, page images.
(1846) Review of The Redskins ("Indian and Injin"). The American Whig review, Volume 4, Issue 3 (September 1846), pp. 276-281. Making of America Text, page images.
(1847) Review of The Crater ("Cooper's Last Novel"). The United States Democratic review, Volume 21, Issue 113 (November 1847), pp. 438-447. Making of America Text, page images.
(1849) Review of Cooper's Works. The United States Democratic review, Volume 25, Issue 133 (July 1849), pp. 51-56. Making of America Text, page images.
(1849) Review of The Pilot (Revised edition). The United States Democratic review, Volume 25, Issue 137 (November 1849), pp. 476-477. Making of American Text, page images.
(1850) The Works of J. Fennimore Cooper -- The Red Rover; A Tale. The United States Democratic Review, Volume 26, Issue 141 (March 1850), p. 282. Short review of new revised edition of The Red Rover "the most successful...the most popular of all Mr. Cooper's works." Making of America Text, page images.
(1850) G.W.P., The Works of J. Fenimore Cooper. The American Whig Review, Volume 11, Issue 28 (April 1850), pp. 406-418. General review of Cooper's works. Making of America Text, page images.
(1850) The Works of J. Fennimore Cooper -- The Ways of the Slow [sic], A Tale. The United States Democratic Review, Volume 26, Issue 143 (May 1850), p. 479. Review of The Ways of the Hour. Making of America Text, page images.
(1850) Review of The Ways of the Hour. The North American review., Volume 71, Issue 148 (July 1850), pp. 121-135. Making of America Text, page images.
(1851) Review of The Leather-Stocking Tales. The United States Democratic review, Volume 28, Issue 153 (March 1851), p. 287. Making of America Text, page images.
(1851) Review of Cooper's Works. The International magazine of literature, art, and science, Volume 3, Issue 1 (April 1851), pp. 1-8. Making of America Text, page images.
(1851) The Works of J. Fennimore Cooper -- Wing and Wing: or, Le Feu Follet. A Tale. Short review of revised edition of The Wing-and-Wing. The United States Democratic Review, Volume 28, Issue 155 (May 1851), p. 477. Making of America Text, page images.
(1851) The Works of J. Fennimore Cooper -- The Two Admirals. A Tale. Short review of revised edition of The Two Admirals. The United States Democratic Review, Volume 28, Issue 156 (June 1851), p. 472. Making of America Text, page images.
(1851) The Ways of the Hour: A Tale. A long review from Brownson's Quarterly Review, July 1851.
(1852) Review of Cooper's Works. The North American review, Volume 74, Issue 104 (January 1852), pp. 147-161. Making of America Text, page images.
(1859) Notice of The Pioneers, The Last of the Mohicans, The Red Rover, The Spy, and Wyandotté (Darley Edition). The North American review, Volume 89, Issue 184 (July 1859), pp. 279-280. Making of America Text, page images.
(1859) The Novels of James Fenimore Cooper. The Atlantic Monthly, Volume 4, Issue 23 (September 1859), pp. 394-395. The Darley Edition. Making of America Text, page images.
(1859) Review of The Pioneers, The Last of the Mohicans, The Red Rover, The Spy, Wyandotté, and The Bravo (Darley Edition). The North American review, Volume 89, Issue 185 (October 1859), pp. 289-316. Making of America Text, page images.

(1860) Notice of The Sea Lions, The Monikins, Satanstoe, and Home as Found (Darley Edition). The North American review, Volume 91, Issue 188 (July 1860), pp. 278-279. Making of America text, page images.
(1861) Notice of Cooper's Works (Darley Edition). New Englander and Yale review, Volume 19, Issue 75 (July 1861), pp. 777-778. Making of America Text, page images.
(1861) Notice of Cooper's Works (Darley Edition). New Englander and Yale review, Volume 19, Issue 76 (October 1861), pp. 952-953. Making of America Text, page images.
(1862) G.S. Hillard, James Fenimore Cooper -- Review of Cooper's Works (Darley Edition). The Atlantic monthly, Volume 9, Issue 51 (January 1862), pp. 52-68. Making of America Text, page images.
(1864) James Fennimore Cooper on Secession and State Rights Review of New York (1851), published in The Spirit of the Fair (1864). Continental monthly: devoted to literature and national policy, Volume 6, Issue 1 (July 1864), pp. 79-84. Making of America Text, page images.
(1889) Brander Matthews, The Centenary of Fenimore Cooper. The Century, Volume 38, Issue 5 (September 1889), pp. 796-798. Making of America Text, page images.

Books about Cooper

(1883) Thomas R. Lounsbury, James Fenimore Cooper. The first full-length biography of Cooper. Boston: Houghton, Mifflin, (6th ed., 1886). Page images. [From Society of Arno Schmidt Readers website.]
(1913) Mary E. Phillips, James Fenimore Cooper. An early, heavily illustrated, biography of Cooper, concentrating on his European travels. Mary Phillips was the first biographer to be given access to some of Cooper's family papers.

Articles and Papers

(1853) Call for Contributions to the Cooper Monument. Putnam's monthly magazine of American literature, science and art, Volume 1, Issue 1 (January 1853), p. 107. Making of America Text, page images.
(1856) Entry on Cooper from Cyclopaedia of American Literature (New York: Charles Scribner, 1856).
(1871) Constance Fenimore Woolson, The Haunted Lake. Harper's New Monthly Magazine, Volume 44, Issue 259 (December 1871), pp. 20-23. Illustrated article on Cooper and Cooperstown by his grand-niece. Making of America Text, page images.
(1872) J. Fenimore Cooper. Review of Cooper's life and works. Appleton's Journal, Volume 7, Issue 164 (May 18, 1872), pp. 548-551. Making of America Text, page images.
(1874) Mr. Winter, Leatherstocking on the Stage.. Review of play version of The Last of the Mohicans, at Niblo's Theatre, New York City. Appleton's Journal, Volume 11, Issue 260 (May 14, 1874), p. 339. Making of America Text, page images.
(1874) John Esten Cooke, Cooper's Indians. Favorable discussion of Cooper's treatment of Indians. Appleton's Journal, Volume 12, Issue 284 (August 29, 1874), pp. 264-267. Making of America Text, page images.
(1854) J.F. Hurst, A Day in Cooperstown -- The Home of J. Fennimore Cooper. Ladies' Repository, Volume 16, Issue 2 (February 1856), pp. 106-107. Making of America Text, page images.
(1895) Mark Twain, Fenimore Cooper's Literary Offences. Mark Twain's famous denunciation (on the basis of deliberately fabricated evidence) of Cooper's writing style in The Deerslayer [See Other Writers, under Twain, for articles in rebuttal. And see Twain's Indians for an on-line selection and analysis of Twain's own writings about Native Americans.]
(1921) Carl Van Doren, The American Novel -- Chapter II. James Fenimore Cooper. Appraisal of Cooper's place in American literature. Text from Bartleby.com, Great Books on Line. Other sections of the book may also be relevant.
(1923) D.H. Lawrence, Studies in Classical American Literature, especially Chapter IV (Fenimore Cooper's White Novels) and Chapter V (Fenimore Cooper's Leatherstocking Novels). Although uneven in spots [Lawrence even confuses Lake Otsego with Lake Champlain], these essays marked the beginning of the 20th century renaissance in Cooper studies, and are still well worth reading. (University of Virginia text).
(1930) Tremaine McDowell, James Fenimore Cooper as Self-Critic. Studies in Philology (Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press), Volume 27 (1930), pp. 508-516. Article on Cooper's 1831 revisions of The Spy. Page images at The French National Library website.
(1972) Peggy Craven Burkhardt, Fenimore Cooper's Literary Defenses. Ph.D. Thesis, University of Iowa.
(1976) J. Gerald Kennedy (Louisiana State University), Cooper's Anti-Intellectualism: The Comic Man of Learning. Studies in American Humor, October 1976, Volume III (Old Series), No. 2.
(1982) Leland Krauth (University of Colorado), Laughter in The Pioneers. Studies in American Humor, October 1982, Volume I (New Series), No. 2.
(1996) Wayne Hanley, James Fenimore Cooper in France: One Man�s View of the July Revolution of 1830. Connecticut Review, Spring 1996 Volume XVIII, No. 1
(1996) Alan Taylor, Fenimore Cooper's America. Cooper's discovery that he was a writer, and The Pioneers. From History Today, February 1996.
(1996) Russell Lawrence Barsh, James Fenimore Cooper in Canada Review, originally published in The Literary Review of Canada, January 1996, pp.11-12, of Rick Hornung, At The Edge Of All Things: In Search of Labrador (Stoddart Publishing). Compares Cooper's Natty Bumppo with Hornung's "Naskapi smuggler and black-marketeer...Martin Rouleau"
(1997) Tracy A. Cummings (Lehigh University), Cooper and Cole: Comments on the Power of Nature in The Last of the Mohicans. Essay written for Prof. Edward J. Gallagher's "America's Many Beginnings" course at Lehigh University, Fall 1997. Thomas Cole's paintings illustrating Cooper's novel.
(1998) Georgio Mariani (University of Salerno), L'ultimo dei mohicani: il romanzo, il film, e il problema dell'identità nazionale [The Last of the Mohicans: the novel, the film, and the problem of national identity]. From Revista Internazionale di Studi Nordamericani Acoma, No.12 (Spring 1998), pp. 27-36. [.pdf file]
(1998) Anna Scannavini (University of Rome), Cooper e l'ultimo dei mohicani [Cooper and The Last of the Mohicans]. From Revista Internazionale di Studi Nordamericani Acoma, No.12 (Spring 1998), pp. 14-26. [.pdf file]
(1998) Mr. Twain's Critiquing Offenses. A light-hearted turning against himself of Mark Twain's famous 1895 critique of Cooper. On the "On the Trail of The Last of the Mohicans" website, run by fans of the 1992 Michael Mann movie.
(1999) Richard Gravil, James Fenimore Cooper and the Spectre of Edmund Burke. From Romanticism on the Net May 1999. "Haunted by Burke from the outset of his career, Cooper became more Burkean than Burke himself."
(2000) Alain Korkos, Le Dernier des Mohicans. Short article on the influence of Cooper on one young Frenchman (in French).
(2001) Barbara Buchenau (University of G�ttingen), Comparativist Interpretations of the Frontier in Early American Fiction and Literary Historiography. From CLC Web: Comparative Literature and Culture: A WWWeb Journal (Purdue University), Vol. 3, No. 2 (June 2001). Literary studies of the frontier tend to ignore works, like Catharine Maria Sedgwick's Hope Leslie, and James Fenimore Cooper's The Wept of Wish-ton-Wish that do not fit their preconceived pattern.
(2001) Jean-Michel Racault (University of La Réunion), Le volcan dans l'Ile ou l'interprétation d'une catastrophe. Robinsonnade, utopie et histoire dans le "Cratère" de Fennimore Cooper et "L'Ile mystérieuse de Jules Verne (The Volcano in the Island, or the interpretation of a catastrophe. Robinsonnade, utopia and history in "The Crater" of Fenimore Cooper and "The Mysterious Island" of Jules Verne). Summary and audio. (Centre de Recherches sur la Littérature des Voyages of the Université de Paris-Sorbonne)
(2003) Ryoichi Okada (Niigata University), Cooper and Hawthorne As America's Cultural Countercurrent. Prof. Okada (a long-time Cooper Society member), states that his purpose is to disclose the fundamental similarity between the literature of Cooper and Hawthorne.
Adriana Rissetto, Romancing the Indian: Sentimentalizing and Demonizing in Cooper and Twain. A University of Virginia hypertext discussion of Indians in 19th Century American Literature.
Cooper's Indians. A University of Virginia hypertext discussion of Cooper's writings about Indians, with excerpts (and old illustrations) from The Last of the Mohicans and Notions of the Americans.

Blogs and Cooper

Howard Dratch, The Pathfinder: Action, Adventure and Romance. A favorable review from Blogcritics Magazine, August 21, 2005.

Cooper Archives and Other Reference Sites

Christ Churchyard. Tombstones (alphabetically by surname) in Christ Episcopal Churchyard, Cooperstown (including the Cooper Family plot), as of ca. 1944.
American Antiquarian Society, Worcester, Mass. One of the major Cooper collections of early editions and of Cooper manuscripts and letters. Its holdings of early Cooper editions (some 841 entries) can be searched by telnet. Go to Connecting to On-Line Catalogues, review or download the "on-line guide to searching the catalogs," and follow the instructions.
Itemized list of letters and manuscripts in the Clifton Waller Barrett Library, University of Virginia.
Detailed inventory of the Judge William Cooper Papers at the Paul F. Cooper Jr. Archives, Hartwick College, Oneonta, NY.
OTSEGO COUNTY NEW YORK Genealogy and History Web Site. A large and growing website with historical materials about Cooperstown and Otsego County, New York.
The George Palmer Putnam collection at Princeton University. A few Cooper items (JFC and SFC).

Some Home Pages devoted to Cooper

James Wallace (Boston College) Cooper's Home as Found
Steven Harthorn (University of Tennessee at Knoxville) Afloat and Ashore [Temporarily disconnected pending revision]

Other Important Cooper Websites

The Cooper Edition, Editor-in-Chief, Lance Schachterle. The Scholarly Edition of Cooper's Works, revived in 2002 and currently publishing with AMS Press, Inc. See its The Writings of James Fenimore Cooper Website.
American Authors, directed by Prof. Donna Campbell, Department of English, Gonzaga University: James Fenimore Cooper. Biographic material, links, and other information. Prof. Campbell also has a very useful page discussing the early American novel, and Cooper's place in it, at: The Early American Novel: Introductory Notes
American Literature on the Web, directed by Prof. Akihito Ishikawa, Department of English at Nagasaki College of Foreign Languages, Japan: James Fenimore Cooper. Links to texts and sites. Also, links to resources in Japanese.
Books and Writers: James Fenimore Cooper. A web page (English language -- but in Finland) with a comprehensive brief biography, by Petri Liukkonen, and bibliography.
James Fenimore Cooper (1789-1851) at the All American: Literature, History, and Culture Internet Encyclopedia established by Professor Mark Canada of the University of North Carolina at Pembroke. Detailed survey of Cooper's life and literary contributions, with links. See also his 2002 Course Segment on Cooper, The Pioneer concentrating on The Pioneers.
Early American Fiction at the University of Virginia: James Fenimore Cooper. Information, numerous links.
PAL: Perspectives in American Literature: A Research and Reference Guide, directed by Prof. Paul P. Reuben, Department of English, California State University at Stanislaus: James Fenimore Cooper. Bibliography, themes, etc.
The Classic Text: Traditions and Interpretations. James Fenimore Cooper's The Last of the Mohicans. From a 1997 exhibit of "literary classics" at the Golda Meir Library of the University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee, including facsimiles of pages from eight important editions of Mohicans from 1826-1950.
The Hamilton and Scourge Project. Website devoted to the underwater archaeology of two sunken War of 1812 ships -- the primary account of whose fate is Cooper's Ned Myers (1843), which is quoted as the primary source.

Websites for Authors and Illustrators with Cooper Connections

In 1998 Gérard Macé, a distinguished French poet/essayist, published his luminous and beautiful Le Dernier des Egyptiens, showing how Natty Bumppo's search for signs in the wilderness helped inspire Champollion's search for signs in Egyptian hieroglyphics and his ultimate translation of the Rosetta Stone. A useful site is Chasseurs des Signes (in French).
Karl May Gesellschaft - English Home Page. Karl May (1842-1912) was a German author who wrote over 60 enormously popular novels, many relating to Cooper's frontier tales. Every German Cooper fan knows and has read Karl May.
F.O.C. Darley. Website devoted to Felix Octavius Carr Darley (1822-1888), usually known as F.O.C. Darley, whose illustrations for the 1859-1861 W.A. Townsend and Co. edition of Cooper's works are the best known illustrations covering all of Cooper's 32 novels.
Constance Fenimore Woolson Society. Constance Fenimore Woolson (1840-1894), a grand-niece of Cooper, was an important novelist and short-story writer, with connections in Cooperstown.
Catharine Maria Sedgwick Society. Catharine Maria Sedgwick (1789-1867) was a contemporary of Coopers, with both thematic and biographic links to him, and a pioneer American novelist.
Susan Fenimore Cooper. For the time being, and pending the creation of an SFC Society, material on Cooper's daughter (1813-1894) is housed here on the James Fenimore Cooper website.

Websites of selected Literary Organizations

American Literature Association (ALA). An association of American author societies and related organizations. Since 1990 the Cooper Society has organized a panel at its Annual Conference.
Society for the Study of American Women Writers (SSAWW). We have affiliated with this organization because of our interim representation of Susan Fenimore Cooper.
Association for the Study of Literature and the Environment (ASLE). An active organization with important thematic links to Cooper's work.

Movies, Operas, Musicals

(1998) Songs of the Neutral Ground. An innovative "Internet Musical" based on The Spy, by Norma Valborg.
On The Trail Of The Last Of The Mohicans. An enormous website devoted to the 1992 Michael Mann film of The Last of the Mohicans
Complete Screen Play of the 1992 film, The Last of the Mohicans
(1999) Jessica Roche (Lehigh University), The Last of the Mohicans (1920). [click on "The Last of the Mohicans (1920)" in left-hand column] An undergraduate webpage devoted to the 1920 silent film directed by Maurice Tourneur and Clarence Brown. Part of a "Reel to History" project directed by Prof. Edward J. Gallagher.

Photographs & Pictures

(1823) Poster The Spy; or, The Neutral Ground. Poster for play based on Cooper's novel: The Philadelphia Theatre, Dec. 11, 1823.
(c. 1827) Watercolor portrait of Cooper (ca. 1827) by French miniature-painter Mme. Lizinka-Aimée-Zoé Rue de Mirbel (1796-1849). In the Wallace Collection, London. An unusual portrait, in color, that we have never seen reproduced. An engraving based on the portrait (the one we use on our Society brochure) can be seen in James F. Beard's Letters and Journals of James Fenimore Cooper (Harvard University Press, 1961-68), Volume II, Plate VI.
(c. 1850) Carbon reproduction of an original Daguerreotype of James Fenimore Cooper.
(c. 1825-1860) Complete digital collection of Illustrations for Cooper novels by F.O.C. Darley, J. Hamilton, and J.A. Hows (from Susan Fenimore Cooper, Pages and Pictures from the Writings of James Fenimore Cooper (New York: W.A. Townsend and Company, 1861)). On the Karl May website noted above.
(c. 1830-51) A collection of Cooper letters, fragments of manuscripts, etc., on-line in full scale, comprising part of the "I Remain, a Digital Archive of Letters, Manuscripts, and Ephemera" collection at Lehigh University.
(c. 1865-1880) A collection of 47 old Cooperstown stereographs,at the New York Public Library, including Otsego Hall, Byberry Cottage, the Cooper grave, Natty Bumppo's cave, the Leatherstocking monument, and other views of Cooperstown. Go to the Dennis Small Town America Collection Search Page and enter "Cooperstown."
Cooper's Gravestone, Cooper Family Plot, Christ Episcopal Church, Cooperstown.
(1963) Picture/poster for The Last of the Mohicans, by Ken Riley, Illustrator, Cleveland: Harris-Intertype, 1963. [on Library of Congress Geography and Map Division website.]

On-line Video Programs

An excellent video program on James Fenimore Cooper (recorded April 2001) can be viewed at C-Span American Writers--James Fenimore Cooper. Click on "Watch the Program" and select from the full program, a walking-tour of Cooper's Cooperstown (guided by Hugh MacDougall, Cooper Society Secretary), and other related programs. Fast internet access required.

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